Why should we insist on seeing the photos? If the families don't want them released, then don't release them. They've been through enough already. Even since their discovery they are considered public domain, wouldn't it be the human thing to do to let the families decide on what becomes of them?

My previous post did not make the cut, and I have no idea why as it certainly wasn't offensive in any way. Maybe I was too nice? Probably. So forget being nice—it obviously doesn’t work. Suffice to say that I found some of the posts to be uplifting, yet others angered me with their lack of empathy for the lost hikers and their families.

The photos are private property and no one has the right to look at them except the families involved. It is amazing to me that some feel that since tax dollars were spent on rescuing these men, it entitles the public to look at these photos, also. You are comparing apples with oranges here. What has one got to do with the other? Nothing. Public dollars spent does not enable the public to view private property. If your house is on fire, and the fire department puts out the fire, then does the public have the right to view your personal effects that were salvaged from the fire? Of course not … apples and oranges.

Some people begrudge having their tax dollars spent on rescuing the hikers … so the next time that you or your loved ones get into trouble and need rescuing, should we first determine if you are deserving of rescue? What would the criteria be and who would make the determination? If the accident is a result of bad judgment, should you then be left to die?

Those who are mentioning book deals in their posts … do you know something that I don’t? Has someone signed a book deal, or is that in your fevered imagination? Unless you can cite a credible news source that claims a book deal is in the works, you owe these families an apology.

Dick, from Pittsburgh, Savilla from Gilbert, SC, and Lori, I second your posts. I am shocked and appalled at the arrogance, the ignorance of the subject at hand, the feeling of entitlement, the utter lack of empathy and the unwillingness to respect personal boundaries that is evident in some of the posts. Who are we to determine who gets rescued, how someone should live their life—children or no children—, or how these men should have prepared for the hike? This is America, where Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness are enumerated to be unalienable rights in the Declaration of Independence. Or perhaps you have forgotten?

Leave these families alone and let them grieve in peace.

My husband use to sky dive. Let me tell you he loved it. Every-time he landed on the ground he would scream " God, the RUSH incredible". This was his famous saying each and every-time. Fast forward in life, we now have 2 children. Upon the conception of our first child he quit jumping out of planes. I felt bad at first cause when others would ask how come your not going up he would respond " I have a bigger responsibility now and being a father is the best RUSH of all. He would always explain to me that he made the choice not to jump anymore, how raising the children is number one priority. He always tells me that he loves me so much he would hate to hurt me and the family because of a dumb accident. That was over 14 years ago. I look at him today and thank GOD for him. He is truly a man of character. I believe those 3 climbers put their families as a priority. They did not intend to get to hurt, no one does. They put their lives in the order they felt was best for them. That's okay , they are entitled to do that. What works for my family is different than what works for your family. As far as the cost to search for them. If it was someone I knew and loved I would spend my last penny to find them. None of us can really judge the money end of this issue until we walk in the shoes of a tragedy. I pray for the families to be at peace and to find a comfort. Can any of us truly imagine what it would be like to not know what happened and where the 2 final men are? James Kelly's family has closure. Their loved one was found and returned to them. The other 2 families are left in horror to travel their wild imaginations. Truly a place I would not want to be in. Forget the money end of this situation. We cannot go around deciding who is worthy or not worthy of our almighty tax dollar. The state of Florida has a politician that "Borrowed Tax Payer MONEY" and has never paid it back.....I would rather spend money looking for 3 climbers than to have this corrupt politician lining his pockets with tax payer dollars. Who knows, maybe the extra training the helicopter folks and the rescuers received during this will help them save your loved one in the future. WHO KNOWS!!!!!!!!!

I din't know why we need to see the photos of the climbers as they set out, I think most of us could imagine what they might depict and not be about anything that would reveal much except how heavy or light they were traveling. The strange thing (or perhaps not so strange among some people) is that climbers have perfored all kinds of feats from climbing 6,000 meter mountains solo without oxygen, but many of thos that do such are very canny and know that summiting means you are only half way into your trip. Still crevasses have swallowed their fair share of "experienced" climbers and falling is what climbers spend a lot time trying to avoid and a lot of money on equipment to try to protect themselves from. But aside from the obvious and primary risks any climb that is technical or even if it is not technical are other risks than can be as deadly, but not peripheral to the task of ascent and climbing. First there is a change in the weather from acceptable to unacceptable for moving about in based in the terrain one may need to move about on in bad weather. Next there is the event of injury which may block further movement for one or all in a party. In the event of either bad weather moving in or an injury there is the thought of shelter from the elements and sustenance to keep strength and warmth. While the risks of all occuring are a possibility all the time, the risk increases in winter as the weather is likely to be more challenging as far as temperature goes. Going lighter means moving faster, but the margins for error are much slimmer. These guys took the risk and ended up unfortunately and tragically losing in the odds. What seems tough to piece together is whether they summited or not and if they did and the weather moved in, why wouldn't they stay on a less step side of the mountain unless the wind was blowing from the less step side and they wanted to be in the lee of the wind. The two caves are strange unless they dug the first one after the injury or hitting bad weather or possible just after summiting, then felt they all needed to retreat further down the mountain and during the retreat got caught in the weather and built another cave where Kelly James was. In a small break in the weather or because of desperation thinking about how long their food would last, the two still missing might have tried to go for help possibly rappelling and had an accident themselves because bad weather moved back in or an avalanche. It's tragic and some places charge for the rescue. To an extent that cuts back on reckless or irresponsible behavior, it also cuts back on the affordability of resuce or recovery for many. Unfortunately some people forget that risk for them might also create a situation where other people's lives are risked to bring them back to safety. It is unfortunate that anyone should lose their life, my thoughts go out to their families.

You're upset that everyone is assuming the worst? What would you assume if your loved one was covered in ten feet of snow? In the beginning we all had faith that the climbers would be rescued. They would need a miracle at this point to have kept them alive this long in such grave weather conditions.
As for the pictures, that's just morbid curiosity. Should be left to the families discretion.

I like to send my sincere sympathy to the family and hope and pray they are still alive. As a taxpayer money is not an issue but helping these rescuers helps us find these 2 other climbers who share special gifts for being brave to master the climb and keep their lost friend safe for awhile. May God help us in finding them. And remember with every sport has it's own risks. Let us believe and hope that they will be found.................

I DONT KNOW MUCH ABOUT RESCUE MISSIONS,I DIDNT KNOW IF THEY COULD SOMEHOW USE DOGS LIKE USED AT WTC IN NEWYORK.MY HEART JUST HURTS TO THINK THE FAMILIES DONT KNOW WHERE THEIR LOVE ONES ARE ,MY THOUGHTS&PRAYERS GO OUT TO ALL FAMILIES & RESCUE WORKERS.

A Sajjad VT:

Some of us are wise enough and spiritual enough to know Jesus would not question our faith and would also know that we know these 3- men are with him and thy Father who is wise enough to not let the climbers suffer any more and be stuck on Mt. Hood alive considering our weather this time of year. It's not about our faith - it's about God's elements. Every storm has a job to do whether it's on a mountain or in the valley. For some of you others - - - you should be ashamed of yourself! And to the Sheriff and the Rescue Teams you did an outstanding job trying to find them and bring them down alive. The News Media did their jobs as well and thank God we pay taxes for things like this and thank God for all the wonderful volunteers that came near and far!!! Even with all the greatest Hi-Tech... they couldn't control the weather. The climbers families are in deep pain and in shock. I don't think any of us would have handle this any different. Their family wasn't at Mt. Hood to get the final photos of their love ones... They came to be at the bottom of Mt. Hood to greet them and take them back home with them. The family is in SHOCK AND DEEP PAIN.... Maybe one day they will share the photos.

These climbers ascended Mt. Hood knowing the rissks involved .... After 10 days its reasonable to assume that they did not survive, after all. Its more cruel to the familys , to give them a false hope ... the searchers did all that was humanly possible.

While what happened to these men is tragic, we should take time to remember all of the searchers many of them volunteers who have given of themselves to search for these gentleman. Some of those same volunteer searchers were just recovering from the James Kim search and then were immediately sent out to the Mt. Hood search. Being a member of a search & rescue team myself I understand how these men and women feel right now. As I stated earlier while what happend to the climbers is tragic I take my hat off to the Mt. Hood Search & Rescue Team, the Portland Search & Rescue Team and all of the others who have spent time being a part of the search

Revealing the photos should be left in the hands of the families. My deepest regards and prayers go out to the families of the hikers. Our prayers are with you.

I agree with one of the post here. I also wish the family would reconsider releasing the photos. Everyday the families of the missing climbers came on t.v. asking the country to pray for their loved ones. The families made these fine men part of our lives by telling us their life stories. The families had a choice not to go on camera however they made it our business by talking on camera. The families did a outstanding PR job by making these men so real to us that we all felt such grief for these missing men. I believe that the media kept this story alive in part because we the public wanted to know more. We wanted to know more because the families had made these men so real for the viewers. The media kept the story alive which kept the SEARCH ALIVE FOR THE FAMILIES. I can't help but feel that we were all used as a means to keep the search up. Now that the families no longer need us (recovery mission over) they are going to keep the pictures private. Wait a minute.............private......my tax dollar paid for the pictures to be developed.........furthermore the families showed us when we can serve a purpose they are willing to share, now that we do not serve a purpose they are not so willing to share..........I may make a difference choice in the future , not to emotionally involve myself in a story. This tragedy had really taken a toll on me. The bottom line is that families has the right to keep those pictures private. Yesterday the sheriff was talking how the families were getting close to some of the search and rescue teams and sending them dinners. Again great PR work. Befriend the rescuers so that they will take a risk against their better judgement and bull there way up to the top of that mountain. You heard the sheriff he had to calm that down. I'm convinced that one of the family members is in the PR world as part of their business and is doing great at it. My bottom line.........no matter what my heart goes out the families of these men that have passed away on Mount Hood, It's a tragedy that all of us wish never happened. As far as the complainers about the money spent on the rescue.......it's only money, we'll make more.....3 human beings are worth more than the money spent. I just wish the families would have thought enough of us in the end to share the photos. They sure thought about us when we served a purpose !

I am upset that everyone is assuming the worst. It is not impossible for these guys to still be alive. What would Jesus say? Where is your Faith?

Most people want to see the photos to continue to fan the fire. The climbers photos are still all over the internet and newspapers - Grab one of those if you want to see their pictures!!! The pictures prior to the 3 climbers climbing Mt. Hood is all their family have left. Imagine what it was like to leave the Mt. Hood area for the last time for them with photos of their love ones prior to climbing... Although the cell phone didn't save any of the climbers - thank God James had a cell phone with him and the camera. His cell phone helped pinpoint his location and the film in his camera told the Searchers alot. I believed that may have been God's way of letting us all know he decided to bring his 3-bright men home to him and off the cold mountain. I don't think I would want to see the photos now if I was related to the climbers... My prayers with their family and friends. I know their pain is great as they are under this weight. As a African/American/Female climber I feel like I have lost 3-brothers.

We have already seen photos of the climbers with beautiful smiles on their faces... We have also seen their photos the past two weeks. Let the family keep the pictures prior to their climb. Thank God some of you have a heart! For the ones that doesn't perhaps a hike or mountain climb could do you a world of good and reconnect to you your spirt. These climbers tried to beat the weather ---they didn't want to die on Mt. Hood nor, cause great pain for their friends and love ones. The weather is part of the mountain and the mountain is part of the weather and we are related to both. More people die in this country/around the world every year from storms. The NW death toll is now 14 regarding the windstorm we had last week. Some people we were safe in their homes... during the windstorm last week and were killed. Some of you act like these climbers had nothing better to do. I climbe mountains and love it. It's good to know that should something happen to me that there are people that will risk their life and search for me and many will pray. People have been climbing mountains since the beginning of time and I would rather die on a mountain as opposed to be killed for my I-Pod or by a drunk driver. God made the mountains so dying on a mountain is also a spiritual way of going home to him. I didn't know these climbers but I know they had a kind spirit about them and they loved God's beauty enough to explore and I believe we have lost 3-bright lights that brighten our world. Too bad we can't EXCHANGE some of you with your dark/hard souls!!!

The photographs have already been analyzed by the people that need to know. Those that are experts in analyzing climbing accidents will in the future release a report. Anything else at this time, including the public scrutiny of the photographs will serve no purpose to the general public nor to determining the cause of this accident by non-experts.

There are comments about GPS products. These are usually from flat-landers that do not understand navigation in the mountains and high elevations. A compass using Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) is much more accurate then longitude and latitude. Without going into a technical discussion of GPS products, a climber must be able to convert longitude and latitude on a GPS product to UTM. The GPS unit may already do that. Why? Most maps issued by the USGS only identify longitude and latitude every 2-3 miles. One other thing. How long do you suppose batteries will last under the extreme conditions experienced on Mt. Hood? Good advice. Take both.

Personal locator devices? They help in locating the deceased too. The weather was just too severe on that mountain to get to these guys quickly.

My very kindest regards and best wishes to the families and friends of the climbers that lost their lives on Mt. Hood.

PS. Both Larry King and Katy Kouric will have interviews with the family later today.

This is so sad, as someone who knows the Kelly Family I would love for them to know our thoughts and prayers are with you and the other families. I respect all of their wishes of not wanting the pictures to be aired but I think the reason America wants to see them is not for morbid reasons but more of a curiousity and sympathy and to understand who the three hikers/climbers are America lost on Mt. Hood. The media wants them for all the wrong reasons but the REAL people of America whose hearts are breaking understand the families wishes and we respect that. God be with you the families and to the three climbers who will not be forgotten, You are as close to God and heaven as you can be on that mountain.

About the "not dead of winter" comment. I live and work in Portland. The weather forecast for 4 days before the climb was for a major storm with hurricane-like winds. More than 100mph on the coast (actually hit 117mph), over 60mph for the Portland area, with heavy snows in the mountains. Anyone who knows anything about the Cascade Mtns knows what that means for exposure on Mt. Hood. The storm hit right on schedule at 8:00pm on Thursday Dec 14th. These unfortunate climbers either ignored the weather forecast, or chose not to prepare for it. Their families must now live with this knowledge, and I sympathize with them.

I don't see what the big deal is about releasing the pictures. To me, it will personalize the people I have been praying for the last few days. It certainly won't take anything away from the family.
Please, let the people that care about these climbers get to know them a little better.

I see no reason for the public to view the photos, and can't see any possible reason anyone in the public would think he/she is entitled to view them...except mental imbalance, morbid fascination and egotism. For what purpose? Give us a break, what would you, Joe/Joanne Q. Public, possibly do once you've seen the shots? What good would it do? What good would YOU do? I think it's freakish to be so intent on viewing the photos. It's disturbing that there are so many who think they're ENTITLED to see these shots. What a bunch of nuts! Get a grip!!

I am having a hard time understanding why so many people are condeming the search on Mt. Hood and also say such hurtful things about those precious three men. I am not going to say that I am a mt. climber by any means, but I am a native Oregonian and I live in a town at about 4500 feet. Winter conditions can happen at anytime without warning and those men were doing what they loved and were also experienced at. Out tax dollars are spent on so many frivolous things, why are people having an issue with trying to find people and possibly saving lives. As for the pictures, those are the families property and they will do with them what they choose. They did not ask for the media to cover the rescue efforts, they just want their family members found. How dare anyone out a price on human life, what if it was your dad, son, brother, etc. Would you just say, "whatever, they asked for it". I don't think so. But this all just my opinion. I just want to say that I will continue to pray for the two brave men still on that ominous mountain and for all the families and to all of the rescuers, thank you for what you do. I hope that if I were to ever be in a situation where I couldn't find my way out that some of those wonderful people would look for me. As a reminder, no one should take mother nature for granted, she can strike at anytime anywhere, but also don't live in fear of her, because you will out on some of nature's most wonderful places, like Mt. Hood. Thank you for letting me speak my mind.

To everyone who feels they have the right to those photos: What can you possibly gain from them? Can you only think of yourselves, and what YOU can feel from seeing those photos? What about the family. This has been in the media since they went missing-when will it be time for the families to grieve on their own, with out the publics judgement on them or these climbers. It makes me deeply sad when I hear people complaining about the cost of this. This is America, we have the freedom to pursue our dreams, which is what these brave men chose, but all of us make mistakes. All of us deserve help in the time of need, and all of us should be able to deal with things in the way we see fit. Not the way everyone else does.
I pray for these men, and all of their loved-ones. If you or I got in danger doing something we loved, wouldn't we be so desperate for help, and clinging to the hope someone will rescue us? We need to be more understanding and respectful of one another.

THE PUBLIC & MEDIA ARE ALWAYS PRYING - LOTS OF STUFF IN THE NEWS WE DON'T NEED TO SEE - I TOO HOPE THE FAMILY KEEPS THE PICTURES TO THEMSELVES, AND I WISH TOO THEY'D ALL NOT GIVE INTERVIEWS. LET THEM GRIEVE IN PEACE.

My heart goes out to these families. They have thanked everyone for all their help and effort in trying to find their loved ones in this nightmare. It's time to leave them alone to find their peace with all that has happened. To continue to tear at them over funds, pictures or why did they or did not remarks shows the lack of compassion. What next are you going to vote on if they should pay or not. It's the tax payers which I am 1 of many that is happy to see where my money is going. Come on! These are men with families and just the ideal that you can even think of the money make me have pity for the United Stated people. Find some campassion before you find yourselves in a situation where YOU may need help youselves one day.
Pray for them, their families and all that are involved. That doesn't mean you and your bank accounts. Give freely as you have been given, and if you think you have all you do by how great you are then you do need more prayer than any.

RE: bc canada (Sent Dec 20, 2006 11:01:56 PM). When James called his wife on Sunday night, she called Sheriff Wampler WHILE James was still on the phone with her. She was talking to both men at the same time. Listen to the sheriff's exclusive interview on www.kgw.com.